Saturday, December 29, 2012

Pat Shurmur, Tom Heckert expected to be gone by Monday

Browns coach Pat Shurmur and general manager Tom Heckert are expected to either be fired or part ways with new owner Jimmy Haslam and new CEO Joe Banner by Monday, league sources told Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

It's reminiscent of 2008, when former Browns coach Romeo Crennel and general manager Phil Savage lost their jobs following a 31-0 loss in Pittsburgh. Former Browns coach Eric Mangini suffered the same fate after losing 41-9 to the Steelers in 2010.

When Haslam agreed to buy the team in August and Banner took over in October, it was almost a foregone conclusion that the two would want to hit the ground running with their own people. Banner made it clear in an interview with The Plain Dealer in November that he had excellent candidates in mind at all positions to take the Browns to a championship level.

He also stressed that he wouldn't be one to stock the Browns with people he's worked with before, and that he'd rely on all the relationships he'd developed over the years.

Heading into today's game, Heckert and Shurmur both knew they'd be gone afterward even though they hadn't been informed yet, sources said.

"Listen, I get this, and my concerns are for my team and making sure that we do all the right things during the game to give our guys the best chance to win,'' said Shurmur, who heads in with a 9-22 record.

"That’s where I’m at. We have not won enough football games, and I know that’s the way this things works, but in our situation I see improvement and I’ll leave it at that.''

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I presently live in Tampa, but am a native Philadelphian. I am an avid Eagles fan. I love movies spanning its entire history. I have a specific love of history and politics.My politics are conservative.